Florida Senate subcommittee approves medical marijuana extract

It’s the latest round in the state’s debate over medical marijuana. A Florida Senate subcommittee voted Monday night to legalize a marijuana extract in the form of a low-dose liquid that could be given to children with severe seizures. State Senator Rob Bradley, R-Flemming Island, is a cosponsor of the bill. “We are dealing with some of our fellow Floridians who have tried everything and they are at the end of their rope,” he said.

Senate Bill 1030 would legalize a strain of medical marijuana processed into a non-euphoric extract that is high in cannabidiol, or CBD, and low in the chemical tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, which gets people high when smoking the plant. This strain is nicknamed “Charlotte’s Web,” and it could be dropped into children’s mouths to offer relief from chronic epileptic seizures.

Critics say approving any form of medical marijuana could set the stage for recreational use of pot like in Colorado. The bill says only doctors could decide who can receive the treatments and doctors would have to keep records on how effective the treatments are.

“For me, it’s just about that mother, that father and their child and giving them all the tools they need to give relief to their child,” Sen. Bradley said.

A house subcommittee has already passed a similar bill. If the bill becomes law in Florida, families listed in a statewide “compassionate use” registry would be allowed to use Charlotte’s Web to ease their children’s pain.